Laser Qualifier at the Mountbatten Centre, Plymouth

“Olympic Gold Medallist Master Class”

Fifty-two Laser Standards made the trip down to Devon for the second Spring Laser Qualifier of 2010. Racing was run inside the breakwater with Race Officer, Ken Falcon and his team, running proceedings for the weekend.

Race 1:

Following two general recalled starts, the fleet eventually got underway in a light 7-8 knots breeze from the south-west with a large 2 metre swell and poor visibility. At the first WM, Paul Goodison and Nick Thompson led having come in from the middle left hand side of the course. Rob Holmes rounded in 3rd followed by James Gray, Max Holloway, and Rob Godwin. The tide was pushing up the course making for some nice rhumb line sailing on the reaching legs. The breeze increased slightly on the 2nd beat but places remained unchanged at the finish. Goodison and Thompson extended their lead finishing 1st and 2nd respectively. Holmes showed good downwind speed finishing 3rd with Gray taking 4thjust ahead of Holloway who made a late surge on the final run.

Race 2:

With the tide now increasing and pushing the sailors over the line, starting became a bit of a challenge for the sailors. Following a number of general recalls under black flag the fleet got underway with the main pack fighting for good starts at the starboard end. Goodison led at the windward mar from youth sailor Martin Evans. James Gray, Rob Godwin and Phill Reynolds were in pursuit. On the 2nd beat the wind started shifting right with increases in pressure. Gray bridged the gap on Goodison and Evans sailing further right on the beat. Thompson made the largest gains moving up into 4th position. Goodison took 1st, Evans 2nd, Thompson 3rd, Gray 4th, and Godwin 5th.

Race 3:

The wind followed the forecast, swinging to the North West, meaning that the course had to be re-laid. The wind increased, building to 20 knots. Phill Reynolds powered out of the start as the sailors went for speed as they tried to negotiate the steep chop. The tide was increasing, running from left to right across the course. Thompson and Gray made the most of the shifts on the first beat rounding the windward mark 1st and 2nd, powering down the top reach. Eifion Mon, Holloway, Reynolds, Stephen Powell, Godwin, Greg Carey, and Goodison were all in pursuit. Thompson extended on the first reaches as Mon overtook Gray. On the 2nd beat, Goodison made the largest gains taking the right hand side of the course. Close downwind battles ensued as the sailors tried to take advantage of the gusty conditions. Thompson took 1st, Mon 2nd, Goodison 3rd, Powell 4th, and Gray 5th.

Race 4:

Following a delay on shore as the sailors waited for the wind to arrive, racing eventually got underway in a light 6-8 knot breeze from the SW. The leaders emerged from the middle right hand side of the course, taking advantage on the assisting tide in the channel on the right hand side of the course. Oscar McVeigh led having been furthest right on the beat. James Green, Andy Le Grice, George Spedding, and Goodison and Thompson were all in pursuit. Following a bit of a procession on the 2nd beat, Goodison used his downwind speed to overhaul Green and McVeigh on the final downwind leg. Goodison took 1st, Green 2nd having also taken McVeigh on the final downwind. McVeigh and Spedding took well deserved 3rd and 4th places respectively with Thompson recovering to complete the top 5.

Race 5:

Race 5 got underway on a heavily pin biased line with the tide pushing the sailors away from the line. The leaders emerged from the left hand side of the course having gained from the line bias and long time spent sailing port tack. Goodison led at the windward mark, chased by Matt Reid, Phill Reynolds, Holloway, Mon, Alex Mills-Barton, Stuart Godwin, and Stephen Beckett. The reaches were light and patchy with only small gains to be made. On the 2nd beat those who went too far left lost out as those who took the middle track made gains from more stable pressure. Goodison secured victory with Reid taking executing a superb 2nd place. Mills-Barton took 3rd, Eifion Mon 4th, and Stuart Godwin 5th.

Overall Results:

1st Paul Goodison, 4 pts
2nd Nick Thompson, 11 pts
3rd Eifion Mon, 22 pts
4th James Gray, 23 pts
5th Alex Mills-Barton, 24 pts